My big project for this winter (other than the forthcoming arrival of our baby girl) is to convert our garage to railway room. Phase 1 is to insulate the walls, seal the floor, insulate + improve the seal on the door and board in the ceiling, the second phase is adding a side door (and possibly a window as well.) fortunately have a couple of friends with the required expertise to work it all out...

Anyway what does that have to do with the old layout...

My original plan for the garage was going to be the continuous run which I have wanted for years. However most annoyingly the garage is only 8ft wide (and once insulated that's another few inches gone). So that's no room for 4ft radius curves...

Plan B it is then, Kites Croft is going to be fitted along one wall. And along the other wall, my thinking is to include Blackcombe.

As it stands the layout is 9ft long, with two 4ft fiddleyards and part of the yards track running over onto the fiddleyard.

The below were taken at Scaleforum a couple of years back

I have been thinking along the lines of two concepts for revitalising it (along with a load of trackwork repairs).

The first option is to keep the left hand fiddleyard, adding a new scenic break to the left of the loading point. the right hand side will have the missing runaround loop completed. In both cases the modern signalling TPWS bits, along with the CWR concrete sleeper track will be removed (the latter being covered by an expanded embankment.)

The second option is to work on the left hand side of the layout, using the extra 4ft to add enough of a head shunt that a rake can be baked straight into the works.

In both options part of the question is what to do with the buildings, I am giving serious thought to removing the two 1980s metal sheds and replacing with more traditional structures. The intention being that I can extend running further back, whilst still running my 1980s stock (ala Wheel Elizabeth). I must say the thought of having a 42xx on a rake of GW clay wagons is very tempting.....

This is more of a long term project, with Kites Croft remaining the priority. However over the next year the modelling budget will be rather tight, limiting the potential for new spend (hence getting the projects in now.) This rebuilding will give something to work on once Kites Croft is 'complete'

The final option is a bit more of a radical change, I am half tempted to see if the basic track plan as built could be converted into something more mendip. The idea of having both layouts using the same stock has a certain appeal, particularly given the future possibility of connecting them together.....

As ever I would welcome input